Dossier 5: TikTok

From #witchtok to #mushroomtok: Marieke Kuypers’ favourite TikTok niches

TikTok is a wild and wonderful place where you can find content for pretty much any interest you can think of, however niche it may be. Anything you post has the potential to reach thousands or even millions of people because of the powerful algorithm that personalises your ForYou page. This also means there are many different sides of TikTok. These are some of my favourite niches:

1. FrogTikTok
#frog #frogtiktok #frogtok

If any animal could be the TikTok mascot, it would be the frog. Frogs thrive on TikTok, probably because they are a little weird but cute as well. FrogTikTok fits perfectly within the kind of strange humor #alttiktok loves. What better animal to see on your ForYou page when you’re scrolling through it at 2 in the morning?

2. Christmas TikTok
#christmas # #christmastiktok #xmas

As we’re all still in the midst of a pandemic. We’re craving comfort. And what is more comforting than Christmas? The fire crackling, presents under the tree, the familiar music and some fresh-baked cookies. Christmas TikTok is there to satisfy all your Christmas-needs all year long.

3. Queer TikTok
#queer #queertiktok #lesbian #gay #lgbt

Queer TikTok is creative, it’s helpful and it’s so stylish. It’s basically the most creative and colorful side of TikTok. My favourite queer TikTok phenomenon is this cool lesbian couple that role-play as your parents. They’re responding to commenters as if they were their children.

@lkbphotography_

POV: We have to go out quick, but always bring you a treat home #LKBFAM #LisaAndPope #fyp #foryoupage

♬ Яма – IC3PEAK

4. Prison TikTok
#prison #prisonlife #prisontiktok

I love learning about places and people I would normally not be familiar with. TikTok is the perfect place to see into worlds you would normally never be able to enter. One of those worlds is prison. Several inmates in (US) prisons have been able to manage to get a phone and go viral by showing us snippets of their lives.

@king_grams1

prison tiktoks🔐ain’t no sunshine behind these walls give me a like to make my day #aintnosunshine #behindthesewalls #prisontiktok #fyp #freemind

♬ Ain’t No Sunshine – Black Label Society

5. Mushroom TikTok
#mushroom #mushroomtok #mushroomcore #fungi

As I’ve said before, TikTok loves weird stuff. And what’s weirder than mushrooms? Welcome to #mushroomtiktok, where you will find every kind of fungi.

6. DracoTok
#dracotok #dracopov #dracomalfoyedit

The Harry Potter fandom is (among many other fandoms) still thriving on TikTok where teens make critical videos about the movies’ diversity as well as edits to put themselves in the movies. The most popular edits involve bad boy Draco and some romantic tension. The actor who played Draco has even reacted to many #dracotok video’s himself.

https://www.tiktok.com/@isabelle_rose_/video/6870153638061411589?_d=secCgsIARCbDRgBIAMoARI%2BCjwekQFXDNzYrm6SVJAb8KVxivoXCpQLUn6d%2FDwBGiv9ffi1aanh5kh7btObOIs8K12Qze%2FbsdYDz4erUvMaAA%3D%3D&language=nl&preview_pb=0&sec_user_id=MS4wLjABAAAADrZFLH3oFz6a26rnrQsa3ubbJQk_3H-uN5AZ3bO7uTNyXQTMAaokibh6n_FVmFee&share_item_id=6870153638061411589&share_link_id=DEC9E0B6-0EC4-4511-8B57-19D8479B0EA3&timestamp=1607003199&tt_from=copy&u_code=da0fjgdlck1974&user_id=6772275869493150726&utm_campaign=client_share&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=copy&source=h5_m

7. WitchTok
#witchtok #witchesoftiktok #wicca

Modern-day witches have found a welcoming home on TikTok, talking about crystals, incantations, herbs and doing tarot card readings. A group of “baby witches” on TikTok even tried to put a hex on the moon!

@harlequinhoney

Sometimes they deserve it #sourjar #witchtok #pagan #hex #curse MiracleCurlsChallenge #SummerLooks FeelTheFlip #BehindTheSong SNOOZZZAPALOOZA

♬ Bottom of the River – Delta Rae

8. Native TikTok
#nativetiktok #nativepride

I have never seen as many people showing off their native culture and traditions with such pride and joy as on TikTok. In #nativepride you will find dances, traditional clothing, braiding, and critical discourse.

@notoriouscree

This remix is my favourite right now, had to try another transition to it. #indigenous #nativetiktok #nativepride #dance #transition

♬ original sound – Tia Wood

9. Cleaning TikTok
#cleanwithme #cleaningtiktok #deepclean

What’s more satisfying than seeing dirty stuff get thoroughly cleaned without having to do the work? Cleaning enthusiasts film their cleaning and even volunteer to clean extremely dirty houses for followers because they love it (and so do their followers).

10. Ratatouille TikTok
#ratatouille #ratatouillemusical

TikTokers’ creativity is insane. Exhibit A:  different sides of TikTok collaborated to create a musical based on the movie Ratatouille. They made a song, a poster, dances, a set and everything else you would need. Gen Z really is the future.

Honorable mentions go to #arttiktok, #historytiktok, #philosophytiktok, #filmtiktok and the other sides of TikTok I forgot to mention.  If you want to discover more sides of TikTok, check out the “Now I know what’s real and what is fake” audio, which people use to introduce you to a side of TikTok. If you encounter a side of TikTok you would like to stay on: interact and you can stay a little longer.